Churchill’s Secret is a historical drama which premiered on British television (ITV) in February 2016.
Here is some basic information about it:
** Directed by Charles Sturridge
** Screenplay written by Stewart Harcourt
** Based on KBO: The Churchill Secret by Jonathan Smith (2015)
** Run time: 101 minutes
This drama is based on a true story: the crisis of 1953 which happened when Winston Churchill was prime minister of the UK for the second time in his life.
In the summer of 1953, Churchill suffered a stroke that almost killed him. For a while, the people around him did not know if he was going to live or die. He did not die. After a while, he recovered. And he was able to continue his job as prime minister until 1955. He died ten years later, in 1965.
But in 1953, the prime minister’s near-death experience was a deep secret. Only a few people close to him knew about the stroke. For many years, the public did not know anything about the crisis that took place in Britain in that year.
Today the crisis of 1953 is no longer a secret. If something similar were to happen today, it would be difficult to keep it a secret for long. But things were different back in 1953.
Back then, the editors of the major papers were told. They were asked not to report anything - “For the sake of the nation” - and they kept quiet. They did not report one word. Such a scenario is hardly realistic today.
While this historical drama is based on a true story, it is not a documentary film. It is a dramatized version of events which happened in the summer of 1953.
In this drama, we get to see the crisis from several angles: his family, his doctor, the civil servants who work for him, and a top politician (Anthony Eden).
In addition, there is a (fictional) nurse, who takes care of him and helps him recover his health and find the strength to go on.
The three letters “KBO” are mentioned several times in the drama. What do they mean? These letters stand for “Keep Buggering On.”
This phrase was one of Winston’s favourite maxims. That is why the three letters are used in the title of the book about the case.
The cast includes the following:
** Michael Gambon as Winston Churchill (1874-1965) – British prime minister 1940-1945 and 1951-1955
** Lindsay Duncan as his wife Clementine Churchill (1885-1977)
** Alex Jennings as the British politician Anthony Eden (1897-1977)
** Romola Garai as nurse Millie Appleyard – a fictional character
Michael Gambon does not look like Churchill, but he is an old man and a big man, and he is a forceful actor, even when he has to play a person who is almost dead.
After a while, you will get used to him and you will forget that he does not look like Churchill. This problem occurs every time Churchill is portrayed on film: no modern actor looks exactly like Churchill.
What do reviewers say about this drama?
On IMDb, it has a rating of 68 per cent, which corresponds to 3.4 stars on Amazon.
On Amazon, there are at the moment 300 ratings of this product, 148 with reviews. The average rating is 4.4 stars, which corresponds to a rating of 88 percent.
Here are the details:
5 stars = 62 percent
4 stars = 23 percent
3 stars = 11 percent
2 stars = 2 percent
1 star = 2 percent
If you ask me, the rating on IMDb is too low, while the rating on Amazon is too high.
A positive review written by Sam Wollaston was published in The Guardian.
The headline says:
“Michael Gambon triumphs in a picture of hope, power and ghastly children.”
Referring to the actors in the movie, Wollaston says:
“Lovely performances all round: from Romola Garai as ballsy Millie; from Lindsay Duncan as Mrs C – classy, dignified, loyal but weary from the burden of being married to the Greatest Man in the World; and especially from Michael Gambon as the main man, making up for not looking very like much like Churchill by being utterly, screen-owningly mesmeric as an old man refusing to give up.”
Wollaston does not offer a specific rating, but the general tone is very positive, as you can see from the headline and the paragraph I have quoted here.
I think he would offer four stars (80 per cent), if he
had to offer an exact rating. In my opinion, such a rating is very appropriate.
When the drama begins, we already know how it will end. We know Churchill is going to survive the crisis and live on for another 12 years, but even though we know this, the movie still manages to capture our attention.
Why?
Perhaps because of the different angles which are played out in the drama.
It is interesting to go back in time and see what happened when Winston Churchill collapsed and to see how he struggled to get back on his feet again.
The fictional nurse Millie Appleyard, who is added for artistic and dramatic reasons, offers a good contrast to Winston. He is old and aristocratic, while she is young and not aristocratic at all.
Apart from the fictional nurse, the drama seems to be historically correct, but there is a minor flaw which is connected to the fictional nurse.
Millie wants to move to Australia. Her plan is mentioned several times. She even has a ticket to the ship that is going to take her there. At one point, when the ticket is in her hand, we can actually read the name of the ship:
Rangitoto
This is a real ship from the New Zealand Shipping Company, which sailed between the UK and New Zealand for twenty years (1949-1969).
But the Rangitoto sailed to New Zealand! It was not a wise choice for a person who was planning to move to Australia.
The movie-makers were careful with so many other details
in this drama. Why did they have to pick a ship that sailed to New Zealand? Why not find a ship that actually sailed to Australia?
But picking the wrong ship is a minor flaw and I will not allow this to disturb my overall rating of the drama.
I like this drama and I want to give it a good rating. But I have to remove one star, because the nurse is a fictional character. This is why I think this product deserves a rating of four stars (80 percent).
PS # 1. Here is a reference to the review mentioned earlier:
Sam Wollaston,
“Churchill’s Secret Review: Michael Gambon triumphs in a picture of hope, power and ghastly children,”
The Guardian,
29 February 2016
PS # 2. Charles Sturridge and Michael Gambon have worked together before.
They worked together on Longitude, a docudrama that was shown on British television in 1999 and released on DVD in 2007.
Longitude is written and directed by Charles Sturridge, while Michael Gambon plays the famous clockmaker John Harrison (1693-1776).
PS # 3. Michael Gambon and Romola Garai have also worked together before.
They worked together on Emma, a miniseries in four parts based on Jane Austen’s novel published in 1815.
The miniseries Emma was shown on British television (BBC) in 1999.
*****
Chuchill's Secret
A historical drama
(2016)
*****
KBO: The Churchill Secret
by Jonathan Smith
(2015)
*****
Winston Churchill
(1874-1965)
British prime minister
1940-1945 and 1951-1955
*****
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